Dispensing tube



Allg 2, 1932 w; T, HANCOCK 1,869,808

' DISPENSING TUBE Filed Dec. 18. 1929 ?atented ug. 2, 1932 AUNITEDSTATES VENT;

IDIKSIENSING- TUBE Application led December 18, 1929. Serial No.414,858.

My invention relates to dispensers for semiliquid substances and isparticularly adaptable for dispensing such substances as pastes, creamsand glue. While the invention 1s capable of many other uses andadaptatlons, which the following detailed description will renderobvious to those skilled in the art, I shall elect, in order to give a.clear understanding of my invention, to describe it as a tooth l0 pasteor shaving` cream dispenser.

One of the chief disadvantages of known dispensers is the inconvenientand bothersome means, usually a screw cap, for opening and closing thecontainer tube. As a result, users often iiail to close the tube afteruse, and the material near the mouth of the dispenser becomes hard anddeteriorated. Numerous attempts have been made to overcome thisdifficulty. but usually have resulted in devices too expens' e to becommercially practicable, or

most ineiiieient in operation.

I overcome this ditliculty by providing a dispensing valve which actsautomatically to open and'close the mouth of the container 5 tube thusinsuring its being closed at all times when not in use.

In describing in detail this particular adaption of my invention, Irefer to the accompanying drawing, in which: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectionalview of my dispensing device, showing the valve in closed position 5Fig. 2 is a similar view, showing the valve open 5 and Fig. 5l is a viewon line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing the numeral 10 designates a compressible container forsuch semi-liquid substances as tooth paste or shaving cream.

Thilo this container may be made in any desirable form, I illustrate itas a tube made of flexible material so that it may be compressed orsqueezed to create a pressure of the contained substance against thevalve controlling the outlet critico, to be later described. Container10 has an outlet orifice 11 and a neck portion 10a surrounding outlet 11and providing a chamber 10b above the orifice to house the valveelements to be hereinafter described.

The. inner wall of the neck portion converges downwardly, as shown at10d, to guide the valve member, to be described, onto its s-eat. Screwedinto the outlet end of neck 10a is a cup-shaped cap member 12 having inits top an outlet 13 which communicates through chamber 10b withcontainer outlet 11. This 55 cap 12 has a depending lug 12a whichprovides a seat for the spring to be hereinafter described.

For opening and closing the'outlet 11 any suitable valve member may beused. I prefer o0 a ball valve, here designated by the numeral 14. Valve14 is constantly urged against outf let 11, which provides an annularseat, by a coil spring 151 Spring 15 tit-s onto the cap lug 12a snuglyso that said lug acts as a seat 65 for one end of the spring and alsotends to hold the spring in position. Spring 15 may be of any form, sizeor strength desired so long as it does not exert more inward pressureagainst valve member 14 than can be overcome by outward flow pressure ofthe material contained in the container 10 caused by compressing thecontainer.

rlhus, to dispense the substance from the container, it is onlynecessary to squeeze or I5 compress the container 10 suf'iciently toexert enough outward iow pressure againstrvalve 14 to raise the valveoil? outlet`11. The substance, under continued pressure, then passes outthrough outlet '11, around valve member 14 and'through the cap outlet13, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2. IVhen the pressure on thesubstance is relieved, spring 15 forces valve 14 onto its seat. y

lVhile my device, as thus far described, operates satisfactorily todispense most semiliquid substances, it is desirable in certaininstances tol protect the small quantity of the substance remaining inchamber 10b after using the dispenser. vide an auxiliary seal consistingof a secondary cap 21 rotatably mounted upon and covering the topportion of cap 12. To prevent this secondary cap from movinglongitudinally on cap 12, I provide a flange 25 on said cap, whichflange overhangs the top ofl the neck 10a, and under which is turned theannular extension 26 of cap flange 210;. `This secondary cap has,through its top portion, a passageway 22, thelower orifice of which isFor this purposeI prooffset from the common aXis of caps 12 and 21.Opening 13 is likewise offset from said axis'so that rotation of thesecondary cap upon cap 12 brings orifice 22a alternately into and out ofregister with opening 13. In order that delivery from passage 22 may beat the center of cap 21, said passage may incline from orilice 22a, asclearly shown in the drawing, bringing delivery orifice 22?) to saidcenter.

Neck 10a may be made integral with the body of container 10 or it may befound more desirable in some instances to make it as a separate elementand screw it into or otherwise aiiix it to body 10. It really makes nodifference insofar as function and operation are concerned.

I have employed the foregoing details of structure for illustrativepurposes only and wish it understood that my invention, in its broaderaspects, is not limited to such details, but is only limited as setforth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A dispenser of semi-liquid substance comprising, in combination: acompressible.

container having a neck within which is provided a chamber, a restrictedopening at each end of said neck, one of said openings providingcommunication between the chamber and container and the other forming afinal discharge orifice, and a spring pressed valve in said chambernormally seating against said first mentioned opening and adapted to beunseated by pressure in the container; the inner walls of said neckconverging downwardly to said first mentioned opening to form guidemeans for the valve. y

2. A dispenser of semi-liquid substance comprising, in combination: acompressible container having a neck within which is provided a chamber,a restricted opening at each end of said neck, one of said openingsproviding communication between the chamber and cnotainer and the otherforming a final discharge orifice; a spring pressed valve in saidchamber normally closing said first mentioned opening and adapted to beopened bypressure in the container; and means for opening and closingthe final discharge orifice.

3. A dispenser of semi-liquid substance comprising, in combination: acompressible container having a neck within which is provided a chamber,arestricted opening at each end of said neck, one of said openingsproviding communication between the chamber and container and the otherforming a final discharge orice; a spring pressed valve in said chambernormally closing said first mentioned opening and adapted to be openedby pressure in the container; the inner walls of said neck convergingdownwardly to the first mentioned opening to form guide means for thevalve; and means for opening and closing the final discharge orifice.

4. A device of the character described,

comprising, in combination: a compressible container having an outletorificev providing a valve seat, a chamber enclosing neck on said lcontainer communicating with said orifice, a cap on the neck andenclosing the chamber, an outlet opening in said cap, a ball valvemember in the chamber adapted to seat against the container outletorifice, a spring acting between the valve member and the cap andadapted constantly to press thc valve member onto its seat, said valvemember being adapted to be unseated against the pressure of the springby pressure from within the container; means for guiding the valvemember onto its sea-t including downwardly converging inner walls of theneck; and a secondary cap rotatably mounted on the first mentioned capand having an outlet passage therein adapted to be moved into and out ofregister with the outlet of said first mentioned cap.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I vhave hereunto subscribed myname this 18th day of November, 1929.

VILLIAM T. HANCOCK.

